## Facts

- Ivan Villarreal enrolled in Texas Southern University’s Thurgood Marshall School of Law in August 2014.
- The law school’s student handbook required first-year students to maintain at least a 2.0 GPA to remain enrolled, and the requirement was described as non-waivable.
- After his first year, Villarreal’s GPA was 1.976, below the 2.0 minimum.
- On June 10, 2015, the law school dismissed Villarreal for failing to satisfy the minimum GPA requirement.
- Villarreal submitted a petition to the Academic Standards Committee challenging his criminal-law grade, alleging irregularities in the administration of the uniform examination and related review practices.
- Although Villarreal’s petition was untimely under the school’s rules, the Committee considered it but declined to change the grade.
- Villarreal sued Texas Southern University and three law-school officials (including in their official capacities), alleging breach of contract and violations of the Texas Constitution’s due-course-of-law protections based on the dismissal.
- The university filed a plea to the jurisdiction, arguing sovereign immunity barred the suit; the trial court granted the plea and dismissed the claims.
- The court of appeals reversed in part and remanded Villarreal’s due-course-of-law claims.
- The Supreme Court of Texas granted review.

## Issues

1. Does a state university’s academic dismissal of a student for poor grades implicate a protected liberty interest under the Texas Constitution’s due-course-of-law clause?
2. Assuming (without deciding) the student has a protected property interest in continued enrollment, did the law school provide constitutionally sufficient procedure in connection with the dismissal?
3. If no due-course-of-law violation is shown, does sovereign immunity require dismissal for lack of jurisdiction?

## Decision

- The Supreme Court of Texas reversed the court of appeals’ judgment as to Villarreal’s constitutional claims and rendered judgment dismissing the case.
- The Court held that an academic dismissal from higher education for poor performance carries insufficient stigma to implicate a protected liberty interest.
- The Court assumed without deciding that Villarreal had a protected property interest in continued legal education, but held the procedures used by the law school were constitutionally adequate.
- Because Villarreal did not establish a constitutional violation, sovereign immunity barred the suit and the trial court lacked jurisdiction.

## Legal Principles

- A protected liberty interest based on reputational harm requires more than an unfavorable academic outcome; it generally requires stigma comparable to an accusation of misconduct that effectively forecloses future opportunities.
- Academic dismissal for failure to meet neutral grade standards, without allegations of dishonesty or other wrongdoing, does not carry the kind of stigma that triggers due-course-of-law protection for a liberty interest.
- In the academic setting, due-course-of-law procedure is limited; courts give substantial deference to faculty and academic committees and do not require trial-type hearings for grading and academic-progression decisions.
- Even when a court assumes a student has a property interest in continued enrollment, constitutionally sufficient procedure may be satisfied by clear published academic standards and a meaningful internal review mechanism.
- Higher education is not treated as a fundamental right for due-course-of-law purposes; academic rules such as minimum GPA requirements are evaluated under a rational basis type of review.
- Sovereign immunity deprives courts of jurisdiction over claims against a state university (and officials in their official capacities) unless the plaintiff pleads and proves a valid constitutional violation that fits within a recognized exception; absent such a violation, dismissal is required.

## Conclusion

The Supreme Court of Texas held that Villarreal’s dismissal from Texas Southern University’s law school for failing to meet a non-waivable 2.0 GPA requirement did not implicate a protected liberty interest, and that—even assuming a protected property interest in continued enrollment—the school’s processes were constitutionally sufficient; without a due-course-of-law violation, sovereign immunity barred the suit and required dismissal.


Texas Southern University v. Villarreal, 620 S.W.3d 899 (2021)